Guide
The turnover electrical kit
What to buy once so the apartment is done in one trip.
4 min read · First Ave Supply, 1587 First Avenue
Short answer. Buy devices, plates, bulbs and detectors by the box before the turnover starts, not during it. A typical one bedroom needs roughly ten to fourteen plates, three to six devices, a detector, and whatever bulbs the fixtures take. The second trip to the store costs more than the whole box did.
The list
| Item | Why it is on the list |
|---|---|
| Wall plates, oversized | Prewar boxes are never centred. Oversized covers the gap left by the last guy |
| Receptacles, 15A | Anything painted over, cracked, or loose in the box |
| GFCI receptacles | Required within six feet of a sink, in bathrooms, kitchens, laundry |
| Switches | Any that are loose, noisy or painted |
| Smoke and CO detector | Required, and the batteries or the unit are usually expired |
| Bulbs | Matched to the fixtures actually in the unit |
| Wire nuts and electrical tape | You will need them and nobody ever has them |
The three that are not optional
GFCI near water. Bathroom, kitchen counters, laundry. If the existing one does not trip when you press test, it is dead and it gets replaced, not ignored.
Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. New York requires both in a residential unit. Detectors have an expiry date printed on the back and they do expire, typically ten years for smoke and seven to ten for CO. A detector with a good battery and a 2014 date on it is not a working detector.
Anything painted over. A painted receptacle or switch is a fire and a tenant complaint. Plates are cheap, devices are cheap, painters will paint over them every time.
Oversized plates, and why
Prewar boxes shift and previous work leaves the opening ragged. A standard plate leaves a crescent of plaster showing. An oversized plate covers it and the wall looks finished without anybody patching. It is the cheapest thing on this list and the one that makes the unit look done.
Buy by the box
A building doing more than a few turnovers a year should never buy devices in blister packs. Boxes of ten are dramatically cheaper per unit and they do not go stale.
Box and case pricing is a building account price. Sign in and the price on this page is your price.
What not to do yourself
Anything in a panel. Anything involving a new circuit. Anything aluminium. Replacing a device on an existing circuit is maintenance, everything past that is an electrician, and in this city the line matters.
Make it a standing kit
The buildings that turn units around fastest keep a labelled bin in the basement with the plates, devices, a detector and the common bulbs already in it. Somebody grabs the bin and the unit is done in one pass. We will put that list together for your building and you reorder it in one click.
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